Go Behind The Scenes Of Our Best Celebrity Moments of 2018

Producers Look Back On Our Best Celebrity Moments of 2018Aired December 28, 2018

As 2018 comes to a close, we're taking some time to look back at a few of the most memorable episodes from 2018, with Rach's Year In Review show!

While the "Rachael Ray" show loves to celebrate its viewers — "because they're celebrities to us," Rach points out — this year, we also had some pretty remarkable Hollywood stars stop by the show.

Not only is Rach highlighting her seven favorite celebrity guests from 2018, but we're sharing behind-the-scenes scoop on what went down, straight from the show's producers. And from hilarious details to inspirational stories, you NEED to read them all!

"It took 2,166 episodes of begging to finally get Alec to sit down at this very kitchen table!" Rach says. "Let me tell you — it was worth the wait — and he certainly didn't disappoint."

"He was just a total sweetheart!" producer Joanna Parides says. And while a lot of celebrities who stop by the show tend to have specific requests, Joanna says that Alec "didn't ask for anything" — aside from a specific hairspray, that is!

2. The Fab Five From "Queer Eye"

When all five members of the new "Queer Eye" Fab Five made their first appearance on the show, Tan France had an interesting last-minute ask.

"We were backstage, ready to walk out for the segment, and Tan France came over and asked if we had an extra bra he could borrow," producer Stephanie Davis says.

He is the resident fashion expert on "Queer Eye," but Stephanie wasn't sure what he needed this particular undergarment for.

As it turns out, Tan felt that his shoulders looked "slumpy," and he needed to use the bra to make shoulder pads. In true "Queer Eye" style, Tan repurposed one of Rachael's old bras and turned the cups into his own shoulders pads. According to Stephanie, Tan said that Rachael *literally* held him up!

During one of Ayesha's show visits, she decided that she didn't want to wear her wig — opting to wear her natural hair up in a cute bun instead. The episode went great, but then producer Rebecca Soldinger received an unusual email from Ayesha's publicist.

"She had actually forgotten her wig in the bathroom and asked if we could send it over to the hotel!" Rebecca says. And while Rebecca would usually never tell this story, Ayesha happened to talk about it on her own Instagram story — proving just how genuine she really is!

When Oprah's BFF and Editor-at-Large of O Magazine Gayle King and Adam Glassman — the creative director of O Magazine — stopped by the show to give away some of Oprah's Favorite Things, producer Joanna Parides had the fun idea to have Adam drive out a golf cart full of gifts. After a smooth-sailing rehearsal, though, Joanna had a moment of minor panic during the actual show!

The golf cart didn't appear to be stopping, and Adam was getting closer and closer to Gayle and Rach. Luckily there wasn't a collision, as the cart ultimately stopped — "[at] literally the last second," according to Joanna.

When Rach found out that Grant Melton, one of her culinary producers, is a huge RuPaul fan, she had to make sure the three of them got a photo together after Ru's interview.

"Not only do I have a great photo of meeting RuPaul, but I have a really awkward video as well," Grant jokes.

Watch the video above to see what he's talking about!

6. Rory Feek

Country music star Rory Feek came on the show this season, and he shared some details about his inspiring and challenging journey over the past few years. His wife Joey passed away after a long battle with cancer, and Rory has been raising his young daughter Indiana — who was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth — on his own.

As producer Brittany Groth prepared for Rory and Indy to come to the show, she became more and more inspired by everything Rory does for his daughter. "I got to find out what an incredible man he is," Brittany says.

"And then he comes here, and I meet him, and he's larger than life!" Brittany says. And Indy? "She was sweeter than anything," Brittany adds. "Segments like these are what make me feel really lucky that I get to have a career like this."

7. Denis Leary + FDNY

"An initiative that is near and dear to my heart is Denis Leary's firefighter foundation," Rach says. "We get to spend the day with Denis each year to celebrate Firefighter's Day… to make the world aware of the need of helping our local firefighters, and to donate to them."